Bomlitz (river)
Encyclopedia
The Bomlitz is a right-bank tributary
of the River Böhme in North Germany. It is just under 22 kilometres (13.7 mi) long and runs through the Heidekreis district in Lower Saxony
.
, whose name comes from its location on the right-angled bend of the valley known as the Bommel-Etz.
in the Stichter See, which was formed during the last ice age as a Schlatt
(locally: Flatt) or wind-formed, heath lake with no outlet. Today it has largely silted up, but in 1900 it was the largest natural lake in the Lüneburg Heath with an area of 6 hectares (14.8 acre). It has a small natural beach.
As it makes its way through the almost unpopulated Riensheide heath the ditch-like brook constantly loses water into the porous subsoil and to the ground water that seeps towards the neighbouring stream of the Hahnenbach, 20 metres below it to the north.
South of the point where it is crossed by the America Line
in the area of Frielingen and Woltem in Soltau borough, and Bommelsen
and Kroge
in Bomlitz parish, the Bomlitz valley gradually deepens, forming a textbook example of a former cultural landscape in the natural region
of the Fallingbostel
loam plateaus. There is a succession of farmsteads and hamlet
s close to the river, each one of which lies on a route crossing the river between the country roads on either side of the valley bottom. The sometimes well-preserved and historic Treppenspeicher
-surrounded farmyards are hidden in small stands of old deciduous trees, surrounded by arable fields and, further away, by pastureland. The fields were cultivated by peat cuttings or Plaggen from the heathlands on their outskirts and turned into productive Eschflur field systems. The often once boggy heathlands are today largely wooded.
Above the village of Bomlitz the valley narrows. Here the river meander
s through near-natural riparian woods and old millponds, that were laid out for the old Bommelse paper mill
(in 1691) and, later, for the gunpowder factory (in 1815). It then flows through the old Bomlitz estate and then, for two kilometres, through the factory facilities of Dow Wolff Cellulosics, one of the largest and oldest chemical industrial sites in Lower Saxony. The factory terrain is divided by steep banks. The sprawling settlement of Bomlitz climbs the left bank, not unlike the village of Benefeld
further downstream which perches on the right bank.
Below the bridge of the Wolff industrial siding
the slope gets steeper, and the stream passes through the former out-of-bounds area and present-day recreational area of Lohheide. The ruins of the old ammunition factory run by Eibia between 1938 and 1945 are still visible in places, partly as piles of rubble, partly as embankments which used to be part of an installation with over 250 buildings integrated into the rough terrain. Here the Bomlitz forms what, for the North German Plain
, is an unusual, very striking series of meanders with river banks up to 20 metres high. The narrow strips of former valley meadow have degenerated into an alder carr
apart from a few less waterlogged places. The course of the stream has been canalised since about 1850, but was renaturised in places. In the triangle formed by the settlements of Walsrode
, Bad Fallingbostel and Bomlitz the stream enters the Böhme at a point dominated by the ruins of a partially blown-up railway bridge.
jointly operated by the firm of Wolff (today: Walsrode Industrial Park) and the parish of Bomlitz, the river below the Wolff factory was one of the most heavily polluted in Lower Saxony. Three small, mechanical sewage works could not prevent the Bomlitz from transporting noticeably heated, cloudy, grey-green water that only provided a habitat for bacteria and whose strong, chemical smell made the environment of the river bank unpleasant. In the decades before 1945 the variable acidity of the river killed off fish several times in the Böhme and, occasionally, in the Aller
as well.
Until the construction of the sewage farm the water was rated as having the highest levels of pollution. Since then however its water quality has improved to acidity class II-III,, but other parameters are less favourable. Its smell and appearance are generally normal, so that its charming valley is now heavily frequented by tourists.
Tributary
A tributary or affluent is a stream or river that flows into a main stem river or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean...
of the River Böhme in North Germany. It is just under 22 kilometres (13.7 mi) long and runs through the Heidekreis district in Lower Saxony
Lower Saxony
Lower Saxony is a German state situated in north-western Germany and is second in area and fourth in population among the sixteen states of Germany...
.
Name
The Bomlitz is known in the local dialect as the Bommelse, a word originally derived from Bamlina meaning Kleiner Baumfluss ('Little Baum River'), because it was the main tributary of the Böhme, formerly known as the Bama or Bumen meaning Baumfluss ('tree river'). Its present name is taken from the village of BomlitzBomlitz
Bomlitz is a municipality in the Heidekreis district, in Lower Saxony, Germany.- Location :Bomlitz lies on the Lüneburg Heath in a heavily wooded area...
, whose name comes from its location on the right-angled bend of the valley known as the Bommel-Etz.
Course
The Bomlitz rises between Neuenkirchen and SoltauSoltau
- Middle Ages :The region of the Lüneburg Heath had already been settled by the start of the New Stone Age about 4,000 years ago. The Soltau area was initially occupied by a few individual farms. The parish of Soltau was probably founded around 830 and the first wooden church Sante Johannis...
in the Stichter See, which was formed during the last ice age as a Schlatt
Schlatt (topography)
Schlatt or Flatt is the Lower Saxon name for a heathland pond, an undrained body of water usually shallow, that is fed by surface water and is largely unaffected by ground water. The water is impounded by a water-retentive layer. Most Schlatts can dry out from time to time.Schlatts are...
(locally: Flatt) or wind-formed, heath lake with no outlet. Today it has largely silted up, but in 1900 it was the largest natural lake in the Lüneburg Heath with an area of 6 hectares (14.8 acre). It has a small natural beach.
As it makes its way through the almost unpopulated Riensheide heath the ditch-like brook constantly loses water into the porous subsoil and to the ground water that seeps towards the neighbouring stream of the Hahnenbach, 20 metres below it to the north.
South of the point where it is crossed by the America Line
America Line
The America Line is the unofficial name of a railway line in northern Germany which is mainly of regional importance today...
in the area of Frielingen and Woltem in Soltau borough, and Bommelsen
Bommelsen
Bommelsen is a village in the parish of Bomlitz in North Germany. It lies in the Lower Saxon Heidekreis district. The parish has about 286 inhabitants and an area of 10 km². - Location :...
and Kroge
Kroge (Bomlitz)
Kroge is a village in the parish of Bomlitz in North Germany. It lies in the Lower Saxony district of Soltau-Fallingbostel. The village has 290 inhabitants and an area of .- Location :...
in Bomlitz parish, the Bomlitz valley gradually deepens, forming a textbook example of a former cultural landscape in the natural region
Natural region
A Natural region is one which is distinguished by its natural features of geography and usually more important, geology. The natural ecology of the region is likely to be significant but one of these factors tends to influence the others....
of the Fallingbostel
Bad Fallingbostel
Bad Fallingbostel is the district town of the Heidekreis district in the German state of Lower Saxony. Since 1976 the town has had a state-recognised Kneipp spa and has held the title of Bad since 5 August 2002. It has close ties to Walsrode, a few miles to the west...
loam plateaus. There is a succession of farmsteads and hamlet
Hamlet
The Tragical History of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, or more simply Hamlet, is a tragedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1599 and 1601...
s close to the river, each one of which lies on a route crossing the river between the country roads on either side of the valley bottom. The sometimes well-preserved and historic Treppenspeicher
Treppenspeicher
A Treppenspeicher is the German term for a small barn or secondary farm building used for storage and typical of the Lüneburg Heath area in northern Germany...
-surrounded farmyards are hidden in small stands of old deciduous trees, surrounded by arable fields and, further away, by pastureland. The fields were cultivated by peat cuttings or Plaggen from the heathlands on their outskirts and turned into productive Eschflur field systems. The often once boggy heathlands are today largely wooded.
Above the village of Bomlitz the valley narrows. Here the river meander
Meander
A meander in general is a bend in a sinuous watercourse. A meander is formed when the moving water in a stream erodes the outer banks and widens its valley. A stream of any volume may assume a meandering course, alternately eroding sediments from the outside of a bend and depositing them on the...
s through near-natural riparian woods and old millponds, that were laid out for the old Bommelse paper mill
Paper mill
A paper mill is a factory devoted to making paper from vegetable fibres such as wood pulp, old rags and other ingredients using a Fourdrinier machine or other type of paper machine.- History :...
(in 1691) and, later, for the gunpowder factory (in 1815). It then flows through the old Bomlitz estate and then, for two kilometres, through the factory facilities of Dow Wolff Cellulosics, one of the largest and oldest chemical industrial sites in Lower Saxony. The factory terrain is divided by steep banks. The sprawling settlement of Bomlitz climbs the left bank, not unlike the village of Benefeld
Benefeld
Benefeld is part of the municipality of Bomlitz in the Lower Saxon Heidekreis district in north Germany. Benefeld has a population of 2,232, although its parish covers just 2 km² .- Location :...
further downstream which perches on the right bank.
Below the bridge of the Wolff industrial siding
Bomlitz–Walsrode railway
The Bomlitz–Walsrode railway is a railway line in the German state of Lower Saxony that is operated by the Osthannoverschen Eisenbahn .- Route :*Bomlitz–Gleisdreieck –Cordingen...
the slope gets steeper, and the stream passes through the former out-of-bounds area and present-day recreational area of Lohheide. The ruins of the old ammunition factory run by Eibia between 1938 and 1945 are still visible in places, partly as piles of rubble, partly as embankments which used to be part of an installation with over 250 buildings integrated into the rough terrain. Here the Bomlitz forms what, for the North German Plain
North German plain
The North German Plain or Northern Lowland is one of the major geographical regions of Germany. It is the German part of the North European Plain...
, is an unusual, very striking series of meanders with river banks up to 20 metres high. The narrow strips of former valley meadow have degenerated into an alder carr
Carr (topography)
A carr is a type of waterlogged, wooded terrain that, typically, represents a succession stage between the original reedy swamp and the eventual formation of forest in a sub-maritime climate....
apart from a few less waterlogged places. The course of the stream has been canalised since about 1850, but was renaturised in places. In the triangle formed by the settlements of Walsrode
Walsrode
-Middle Ages:986 Foundation of Walsrode Abbey by Count Walo. The first recorded mentionof the town is dated May 7, 986.1383 The dukes of Brunswick and Lüneburg grant Walsrode a town charter.1479 First recorded instance of Walsrode's coat of arms...
, Bad Fallingbostel and Bomlitz the stream enters the Böhme at a point dominated by the ruins of a partially blown-up railway bridge.
Water quality
Above Bomlitz the river was and is slightly to moderately polluted. Until the construction of the large sewage farmSewage farm
Sewage farms comprise agricultural land irrigated and fertilised with sewage.A precursor to modern sewage treatment systems, household sewage was collected from towns and cities and transported to nearby farm lands. During the middle ages this was accomplished with hand-carried buckets, but as...
jointly operated by the firm of Wolff (today: Walsrode Industrial Park) and the parish of Bomlitz, the river below the Wolff factory was one of the most heavily polluted in Lower Saxony. Three small, mechanical sewage works could not prevent the Bomlitz from transporting noticeably heated, cloudy, grey-green water that only provided a habitat for bacteria and whose strong, chemical smell made the environment of the river bank unpleasant. In the decades before 1945 the variable acidity of the river killed off fish several times in the Böhme and, occasionally, in the Aller
Aller
The Aller is a river, long, in the states of Saxony-Anhalt and Lower Saxony in Germany. It is a right-hand, and hence eastern, tributary of the River Weser and is also its largest tributary. Its last form the Lower Aller federal waterway...
as well.
Until the construction of the sewage farm the water was rated as having the highest levels of pollution. Since then however its water quality has improved to acidity class II-III,, but other parameters are less favourable. Its smell and appearance are generally normal, so that its charming valley is now heavily frequented by tourists.
Sources
- Geowissenschaftliche Karte des Naturraumpotentials von Niedersachsen und Bremen 1: 200.000, CC 3118, Teil 4 - Grundwasser-Grundlagen, Hannover, 1981
- Topographische Karte 1:25.000, Blätter 2924 Neuenkirchen, 3024 Dorfmark, 3123 Walsrode and 3124 Fallingbostel (Hrsg.: Landesvermessung und Geobasisinformation Niedersachsen), Hannover ISBN 3-89435-220-5
- Matthiesen, H.: Geheime Reichssache Eibia, Walsrode, 1987
- Mußmann, O.: Selbstorganisation und Chaostheorie in der Geschichtswissenschaft: Der Beispiel des Gewerbe- und Rüstungsdorfes Bomlitz 1680-1930. Leipzig, 1998
- Seedorf, H.H.: Walsrode, Fallingbostel und das mittlere Böhmetal im Jahre 1778. Erläuterungen zum Blatt 89 Walsrode der Kurhannoverschen Landesaufnahme des 18. Jahrhunderts (Vertr..: Landesvermessung and Geobasisinformation Niedersachsen), Hannover, 1986
- Stuhlmacher, H.: Heimatbuch des Kreises Fallingbostel. Magdeburg, 1935